TITLE: Mobile alternative delivery points
AUTHORS: Dragana Šarac, Nataša Čačić, Bojan Jovanović
ABSTRACT: The rapid development of e-commerce directly affects the growth of delivery demands for goods and documents. As per our research, customers prefer home delivery. Research in the U.K. reported that the rate of failed first deliveries of home delivery was 12%. This result is caused by the fact that half of homes are empty from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays largely due to changes in the lifestyle. Redelivery is an important source of delivery costs. Additional trips also cause more environmental pollution. Developing alternative delivery points, to enable customers to participate in last-mile delivery is a promising solution. The most popular solution for alternative delivery points is fixed parcel locker, which supports unattended delivery. Fixed parcel lockers, however, have some inherent limitations. First, their location and configuration are fixed in place, which brings poor accessibility and ability to respond to change of demands. Moreover, the fixed parcel lockers have high requirements for information and communication technology (ICT) and can’t be set up in old residential areas. In addition, high construction costs are required. This paper proposes an alternative delivery model. The model implies the use of existing resources. The aim is to minimize the operating cost for the home delivery and to offer customers more mobile alternative delivery points near their homes.
KEYWORDS: optimization, model, delivery points, postal network
PAGES: 18-25
DOI: 10.59478/ATCT.2023.3